Daily Devotional

Scripture Readings

Special Commemorations

The Saturday Before the Theophany

Epistle

The Reading is from the First Epistle of Saint Paul to Saint Timothy [§ 284]. Child Timothy:

For Gk. usage, see 1 Tim. 3:13-4:5; for Sl. usage, see 1 Tim. 3:14-4:5.

3 ¹³They who have served well as deacons acquire a good degree for themselves and much boldness in faith which is in Christ Jesus.

¹⁴These things I write to thee, hoping to come to thee more quickly. ¹⁵But if I delay, I write in order that thou mayest know how one ought to be conducting oneself in the house of God, which is the Church of the living God, pillar and stay of the truth. ¹⁶And confessedly, great is the mystery of piety: God was manifested in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory.

4 ¹Now the Spirit speaketh expressly that in latter times some shall apostatize from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and teachings of demons, ²speaking lies in hypocrisy, having been branded as to their own conscience, ³forbidding to marry, bidding to abstain from foods, which God created for partaking with giving of thanks by the faithful and those who have fully known the truth. ⁴For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be cast away, if it is received with giving of thanks; ⁵for it is sanctified by the word of God and intercessory prayer.

Gospel

The Reading is from the Holy Gospel according to Saint Matthew [§ 5]. At that time:

For Gk. usage, read only Mt. 3:1-6, hereunder; for Sl. usage, see Mt. 3:1-11, hereunder.

3 ¹John the Baptist came forth proclaiming in the wilderness of Judæa, ²and saying, “Repent ye; for the kingdom of the heavens hath drawn near.” ³For this is he who was spoken of by Esaias the prophet, saying, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; be making His paths straight [cf. Is. 40:3].’” ⁴And John himself was having his raiment of camel hairs, and a leathern belt about his loins; and his food was locusts and wild honey. ⁵Then Jerusalem, and all Judæa, and all the country round about the Jordan were going out to him, ⁶and were being baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.

In Sl. usage, Gospel Reading continues with Mt. 3:7-11.

⁷But after he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “O offspring of vipers, who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? ⁸“Produce therefore fruits worthy of repentance, ⁹“and think not to say within yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for a father’; for I say to you that God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. ¹⁰“And even now the axe is laid at the root of the trees; therefore every tree which produceth not good fruit is being cut out and cast into the fire. ¹¹“I indeed baptize you in water toward repentance, but the One Who cometh after me is mightier than I, of Whom I am not fit to bear His sandals. He shall baptize you in the Holy Spirit and in fire.”

Paschalion — Movable Calendar

Saturday of the Thirty-Third Week

Epistle

The Reading is from the Second Epistle of Saint Paul to Saint Timothy [§ 293]. Child Timothy:

2 ¹¹Faithful is the saying. For if we died with Him, we shall also live with Him. ¹²If we endure, we shall also reign with Him. If we deny Him, He also will deny us. ¹³If we are faithless, yet that One remaineth faithful; He is not able to deny Himself.

¹⁴These things be putting in remembrance, solemnly testifying before the Lord not to dispute about words to no use, to the overturn of those who hear. ¹⁵Endeavor to present thyself approved to God, a workman that hath no cause for shame, cutting in a straight line the word of the truth. ¹⁶But profane and empty babblings, be shunning; for they will advance to more ungodliness, ¹⁷and their word will have spread as gangrene, of whom is Hymenæos and Philetos, ¹⁸who missed the mark concerning the truth, saying the resurrection already came to pass; and they are overturning the faith of some. ¹⁹Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth firm, having this seal: “The Lord knoweth those who are His [cf. Num. 16:5]”; and, “Let everyone who nameth the name of Christ stand off from injustice [cf. Num. 16:27; Is. 26:13, 52:11; Jer. 20:9].”

Gospel

The Reading is from the Holy Gospel according to Saint Luke [§ 84]. The Lord said:

17 ³“Be taking heed to yourselves. Now if thy brother should sin against thee, rebuke him; and if he should repent, forgive him. ⁴“And if seven times in the day he should sin against thee, and seven times in the day he should return to thee, saying, ‘I repent,’ thou shalt forgive him.” ⁵And the apostles said to the Lord, “Add faith to us.” ⁶But the Lord said, “If ye have faith as a grain of mustard, ye would say to this sycamine tree, ‘Be rooted out and be planted in the sea’; and it should obey you. ⁷“But which of you, having a slave plowing or shepherding, will say to him when he cometh in from out of the field, ‘straightway, come forth and recline at table’? ⁸“But will he not say to him, ‘Make ready what I might sup on, and gird thyself, and be serving me while I eat and drink; and after these things thou shalt eat and drink’? ⁹“He doth not have gratitude toward that slave because he did the things which were commanded him, doth he? I think not. ¹⁰“Thus also ye, whenever ye have done all things which were commanded you, say, ‘We are unprofitable slaves, for we have done that which we were bound to do.’”

Menaion — Fixed Calendar

The commemoration of the Forefeast of Theophany, and the holy Prophet Malachias, and the holy Martyr Gordios at Cæsarea in Cappadocia.

Epistle

The Reading is from the Second Epistle of Saint Paul to Saint Timothy [§ 292]. Child Timothy:

2 ¹Be thou empowered in the grace that is in Christ Jesus; ²and the things which thou heardest from me in the midst of many witnesses, commit thou these things to faithful men who shall be competent also to teach others. ³Thou therefore suffer hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. ⁴No one serving as a soldier is entangled with the affairs of life, in order that he might please the one who enlisted him. ⁵And if anyone also contend as an athlete in the games, he is not crowned unless he contend lawfully. ⁶The farmer who laboreth must be first to partake of the fruits. ⁷Be considering what I say; O may the Lord give thee understanding in all things! ⁸Be remembering Jesus Christ, of the seed of David, Who hath been raised from the dead, according to my Gospel, ⁹in which I suffer hardship even to bonds as a malefactor, but the word of God hath not been bound. ¹⁰On this account I endure all things for the sake of the elect, that they might also attain salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.

Gospel

The Reading is from the Holy Gospel according to Saint Matthew [§ 36]. The Lord said to His disciples:

10 ¹⁶“Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves. Become therefore wise as the serpents and guileless as the doves. ¹⁷“But continue being on guard against men; for they will deliver you up to councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues. ¹⁸“And also ye shall be brought before governors and kings on account of Me, for a testimony to them and to the nations. ¹⁹“But whenever they deliver you up, do not become anxious about how or what ye should speak; for it shall be given to you in that hour what ye shall speak. ²⁰“For ye are not the ones who are speaking, but the Spirit of your Father Who is speaking in you. ²¹“Now a brother shall deliver up a brother to death, and a father a child; and children shall rise up against parents and shall put them to death. ²²“And ye shall be hated by all for My name’s sake; but the one who endureth to the end, this one shall be saved.”

Lives of the Saints (Prologue)

January 16th – Civil Calendar
January 3rd – Church Calendar

1 The Prophet Malachi.

He was chronologically the last of the prophets, born after the return of the Jews from exile in Babylon in 538 B.C. He was unusually fair of face. According to folk-tradition, he was named ‘the angel,’ perhaps because of his outward fairness, or because of his purity of spirit, or, again, perhaps, because of his companionship with an angel, with whom he often spoke face to face. At these times, others also heard its voice but were not worthy to look on its face. The young prophet spoke forth that which the angel revealed to him. He cried out against the ingratitude of Israel and the sins of the priests. Five hundred years before Christ, he clearly foretold the coming and work of St. John the Baptist (3:7). But he was chiefly the prophet of the Day of Judgment (4:1-3). He went to God young in years, and after him there was no prophet in Israel until John the Baptist.

2. The Holy Martyr Gordios.

Born in Caesarea of Cappadocia, he was an officer in the Roman army under the Emperor Licinius. At the outbreak of a terrible persecution, he left the army and his former rank and went into the Sinai desert. Alone on Mount Horeb, Gordios spent his time in prayer and in pondering the mysteries of heaven and earth. In particular he pondered on vanity and on the worthlessness of all for which people struggle and strive so on earth. He came finally to the desire to die and so move into that life that is without transience or corruptibility. With this desire, he went down into a town where pagan games were held. He presented himself to the governor as a Christian. The governor attempted in vain to turn him from the Faith with flattery and threats. Gordios remained unyielding and firm as diamond, saying: “It would obviously be an act of the greatest folly to trade this brief life for eternal torment and spiritual peril.” Condemned to death, he hastened joyfully to the place of execution, speaking with the executioners on the way of the wonderful and sweet knowledge of Christ. With the name of Christ on his lips, he delivered his youthful body to the sword and his righteous soul to God in the year 320.

3. St. Geneviéve.

Protectress of Paris, she became worthy of the kingdom of God by fasting, prayer and works of mercy. She entered into rest on January 3rd, 512, at the age of 89.

FOR CONSIDERATION

God hearkens to the prayer of a righteous man. This is clearly seen in the lives of Moses and Elias and of many righteous men and prophets of the Old Testament, as also from the lives of the apostles and saints. When St. Genevieve was living the monastic life in Paris, Attila and his savage Huns laid siege to the city. Fear and horror took hold of all the inhabitants, who were in hourly expectation of its occupation by the enemy. St. Genevieve then called on the people to fast and pray, that the calamity might be averted. Many men and women responded to the saint’s call, and began to fast and to pray. Genevieve herself kept the strictest fast and made the most fervent prayer to God. After a very short time, the enemy withdrew from Paris, without any obvious reason, and went to some other place. That which cannot be accomplished by the swords of many sinners, the prayer of one righteous person can perform.

Daily Scripture Readings taken from The Orthodox New Testament, translated and published by Holy Apostles Convent, Buena Vista, Colorado, copyright © 2000, used with permission, all rights reserved.

Daily Prologue Readings taken from The Prologue of Ochrid, by Bishop Nikolai Velimirovic, translated by Mother Maria, published by Lazarica Press, Birmingham, England, copyright © 1985, all rights reserved. Edited by Dormition Skete.